Comfort in my Woodpile

Few things in my life give me the sense of satisfaction that my wood pile does. Nobody is gonna praise me for the time I put into it. I don’t feed my family with those efforts. I do keep them warm, but I could probably do that by doing a side job and putting the extra money toward heating costs. I get simplicity. I start with a hard piece of tree. Sometimes I cut it down myself, but usually I take what has fallen or been felled by someone else. I cut it, carry it, split it, stack it, and eventually burn it. Many People enjoy the fire, the heat, the light, the primal act of burning. But most don’t get to see and feel the other side-The wood! I have stacks of wood. I care for my wood. I’m making plans for a wood shed…I probably dont need one. I’ve been doing well with just the black plastic on my wood stacks…but I’m gong to make one anyway.

What is it about getting up an hour early in the morning and going outside to swing the maul, or stack wood that makes me feel so content and sets the stage for a good day?

I enjoy stacking with my children even though they complain nonstop about it. There is just something good about gathering the kids together into a work force and stacking a big pile of wood. Maybe its the conversations I’d miss if we just sat around the house and watched football or more likely went our separate ways to entertain ourselves. Running my saw makes me smell like gas and covers me with sawdust and bark. I love it. I have a shop full of mechanics tools that I appreciate for their ability to make a job easier. But they don’t give me the same enjoyment like running my saw, my wood splitter, and swinging an axe and maul.

Some of the Real Benefits of Burning Wood

Came home from shopping and dinner with the wife and the youngest and stoked up the stove. Got it rolling while I went thru the Hearth.com forum board. Its all set and burning between 500-550 surface temp right now. Putting out great heat. I went upstairs to check on my little one and he’s all tucked in to bed with his teddy bear snuggled under his head. A mid-weight cotton comforter is all he needs because of the heat from the stove. My wife is snoozing away under a down comforter and the dogs are cozied up on their bed. The temp in the room with the stove is 80. Its 38 degrees outside right now and tonight we had our first snow of the season. It didn’t stick, but the whole feeling here is a warm safe comfortable home. Tomorrow night when we get home from Grandmas house, I’ll pop The Polar Express into the dvd player, we’ll all sit back on the couch and watch it together with the wood stove burning away.